The present invention is directed to an apparatus for holding in readiness and selecting at least one storage disk.
The Blaupunkt catalog xe2x80x9cSound und Fahrvergnxc3xcgen pur. Mobile Kommunikation von Blaupunkt. Programm ""96/""97xe2x80x9d (Pure sound and driving enjoyment. Blaupunkt mobile communication. 1996-97 product line) describes apparatuses for holding in readiness and selecting at least one storage disk in the form of compact disc changers, for example, xe2x80x9cCDC-F05xe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cCDC-A05xe2x80x9d.
The apparatus according to the present invention, in contrast to prior devices, has an advantage that the at least one storage disk can be guided in external threads of the threaded rods, with flights (turns) of the external threads coacting with individual edge regions of at least one inserted storage disk. It is thus not necessary to support the storage disk in a drawer guided by the flights of the external threads, thus, material and weight can be saved. Since a drawer is unnecessary, access to a storage disk held in readiness in the apparatus is also simplified. The coaction of the flights of the external threads with individual edge regions of the at least one inserted storage disk, and the fact that a drawer is thus not necessary for storing the storage disk, make it possible for the storage disk to be displaced along the threaded rods, by rotation of the threaded rods, with relatively little energy expenditure and particularly smoothly.
It is particularly advantageous that the at least one storage disk can be guided directly in the flights of the threaded rods. This minimizes the material outlay for guiding the at least one storage disk in the flights of the threaded rods, and thus minimizes weight and cost. It is also possible to stack several storage disks more closely one on top of another, since no drawers or other space-consuming additional holding apparatuses for the storage disks are necessary between the individual storage disks. The flights can thus be implemented with a small spacing between one another.
Because of the direct guidance of the at least one storage disk in the flights of the threaded rods, it is also possible to achieve minimal lateral dimensions for the apparatus, since no additional retainers for the at least one storage disk on its edge are necessary.
Because of the material and, thus, weight for additional holding apparatuses of the at least one storage disk saved by direct guidance of the at least one storage disk in the flights of the threaded rods, the energy expenditure necessary for displacement of the at least one storage disk along the threaded rods by rotation of the threaded rods is reduced, and the smoothness with which the at least one storage disk runs in the flights of the threaded rods during that displacement is improved.
A further advantage is that the at least one storage disk can be supported in grooves of individual and mutually independent sleeves which can be guided in the flights of the threaded rods. The result of this is that the at least one storage disk is protected from wear in its edge region, since it is guided in the flights of the threaded rods not directly but rather via the mutually independent sleeves.
A further advantage is that the sleeves effect a certain tolerance compensation, so that the storage disk is protected from bending due to, for example, non-uniformities in the rotation speed and/or the pitch of the threaded rods. The at least one storage disk is thereby once again handled more gently and protected from wear.
A further advantage is that the sleeves can be guided along the threaded rods on frames. The sleeves are thereby prevented from twisting.
A further advantage is that the external threads are configured in the same direction. This means that the at least one storage disk can roll in the flights of the threaded rods during transport, since upon displacement along the threaded rods, the at least one storage disk can perform an additional rotation. The favorable friction conditions between the flights of the threaded rods and the at least one storage disk can thus be exploited.
The energy expenditure required for displacement of the at least one storage disk along the threaded rods by rotation of the threaded rods is thereby further decreased, and the smoothness with which the at least one storage disk runs in the flights of the threaded rods during that displacement is further enhanced.
Because of the rolling friction of the at least one storage disk in the flights of the threaded rods, the threaded rods can advantageously be made from elastic material, and the at least one storage disk can be guided with zero clearance in the flights of the threaded rods. Additional space can be saved especially by the zero-clearance configuration, both in the lateral dimensions of the apparatus and also by closer stacking of several storage disks in the apparatus. Due to the use of an elastic material for the threaded rods, for example, wear in the edge regions of the at least one storage disk during displacement along the threaded rods can be further reduced, and a tolerance can be achieved, in the event of non-uniformities in the rotation speed and/or pitch of the threaded rods, for the mounting system of the at least one storage disk in the apparatus, so that it remains largely protected from bending and the wear brought about thereby.
A further advantage is that the external threads of the threaded rods have a much greater pitch in a first region than in other regions. This results in a high advance speed during displacement of the at least one storage disk in the first region, and thus a greater spacing between a storage disk currently located in the first region and adjacent storage disks, whereas storage disks located in the other regions rest directly against one another. This makes it possible to bring a storage disk selected for reading and/or writing into a predefined position, and to create a safe spacing from the adjacent storage disks. The storage disk can then easily be moved to a fixed-height playback apparatus and/or a read head can penetrate between the storage disks.